Does a Digital Marketing Scattergun Approach Work?
We'd never suggest a scattergun approach to your marketing, but from the point of view of a consumer, who is being constantly bombarded with marketing messages, visual adverts, notifications on their phone and the countless other ways we receive information in the modern world, it can feel like being on the receiving end of a scattergun. What you need to do is ensure that your message not only cuts through that noise, but sticks when it lands.
Simplicity is great, sometimes boiling down your core message to a simple slogan can be the most effective way of communicating what you can offer without blurring the issue; sending concrete messages which are very clear tend to cut through the noise effectively. This is why most organisations have a strapline or motto that is synonymous with their offering. A great example is the takeaway service Just Eat.Their name serves as their slogan, which is a great example of simplicity and of a concrete marketing strategy. It's also a phrase we might use in our day to day lives, for example asking the kids to “just eat your vegetables” or “I'm so hungry I need to just eat before I can focus”. This is a clever ploy because every time someone uses those words in real life they'll subconsciously remember the company Just Eat.
Just Eat have also done a good job of using catchy songs and jingles that stick in our minds and they're exactly the sort of thing that pops into our heads when we're trying to focus on something else. In the most successful cases hearing that song or a similar hook elsewhere can invoke the memories of the advert which further reinforces the message.
Playing on the unexpected or taking a fresh angle on something, can also help cut through the noise and make your message stick.For example, a car manufacturer who has revolutionised airbags and airbag placement might create content with a fresh angle such as “The hidden dangers of airbags”. When the average person thinks of airbags we also think of safety and protection, so to hear that there are dangerous aspects of airbags grabs our attention and make us want to find out more. The actual content may focus on how new airbag developments have made them safer compared to older styles or other manufacturers, but once you've got someone reading your content they're already hooked and are likely to read to the end and even take action.
Using a narrative to connect with your audience is a common tactic because it works, but with almost everyone trying to get customers to listen to their story you have to stand out a lot more. This is where it is vital that you understand what makes your customers tick, so that you can craft a narrative which appeals to their fears and their desires on an emotional level.If your content moves someone, they're going to remember you, while if your narrative is very similar to ones seen elsewhere or it just doesn't have that emotional hook, or a valuable lesson, it's going to disappear among the noise. You know your content has stuck when it starts being shared, and if you get this right you might even find your own content being shared back towards you within your own network – it has gone viral and is being shared because it connects with people and gives them something they're not getting elsewhere.
To get your content and message through the noise is a challenge on its own, but to get that content to stick requires simplicity, a hook that cannot be ignored, and an emotional connection.
